Paranormal

NEW YORK JOURNAL OF BOOKS praised debut paranormal author Chris Holm’s DEAD HARVEST (Feb 2012) for its ability to pull ‘readers in and pins us to the edge of our seats with a cleverly conceived story that is flawlessly executed.”

Although this is his first novel, Holms previous work has appeared in: ELLERY QUEEN’S MYSTERY MAGAZINE, ALFRED HITCHCOCK’S MYSTERY MAGAZINE, and THE BEST AMERICAN MYSTERY STORIES 2011. He’s also been an Anthony Award nominee, a Derringer Award finalist, and a Spinetingler Award winner.

DEAD HARVEST is the story of Sam Thornton, a young man who collects souls. The souls of the damned, to be precise. Once taken himself, he’s now doomed to ferry souls to hell for all eternity, in service of a debt he can never repay. But when he’s dispatched to retrieve the soul of a girl he believes is innocent of the horrific crime for which she’s been damned, Sam does something no Collector has ever done before: he refusesmore »

R.C. Hayes has settled into his job with the FBI, and put behind him the strange incident that ended his military career. But when he and his partner are sent to the Flathead Indian Reservation in Montana to look into a murder, events take an unsettling and eerily familiar turn.

R.C. struggles to solve the case as deaths pile up around him and as the situation takes a decidedly unnatural cast. With the help of a mysterious new ally, he may finally come to terms with what happened to him long ago—and enter a strange new career he is uniquely suited for. Provided he can survive the incursion of supernatural elements into his supposedly safe and mundane world!more »

I’d like to welcome Carole Nelson Douglas, author of VIRTUAL VIRGIN, a post-apocalyptic, paranormal, crime story, full of drugs, zombies, werewolves, and even, yes, robots. She is the best-selling author of this Delilah Street series as well as the Midnight Louie mystery series. I had the wonderful opportunity to interview her about her writing and the supernatural. What more could one ask for? So, here we go!

In 25 words or less, tell us what your story is about.

Delilah Street, ex-reporter, works with and against 2013 Las Vegas crime/supernatural elements while hunting her double viewed on a CSI TV show autopsy table.more »

Supernatural thrillers bring the best of thriller fiction and the best of the horror and paranormal worlds together into one spine-tingling read. In his latest book, IN THE BLEAK MIDWINTER, the small town of Hulis, Missouri has a killer Christmas Spirit…

FOR THE PEOPLE OF HULIS, MISSOURI, THE CHRISTMAS HOLIDAYS ARE HELL…

On December 22nd, 1975, something unthinkable happened in the small, northern Midwest town of Hulis, Missouri—something so heinous that it turned the holidays into a waking nightmare.

Now, 35 years later, it’s happening all over again, and for those involved, Christmas will never be the same…. It’s up to FBI Special Agent Constance Mandalay, a recurring character from the Rowan Grant Investigation books, to save their lives.more »

TIME OF DEATH…It isn’t easy being a strong, idealistic, independent young woman in 1952. It’s even harder when you see and speak with ghosts but that’s Melody Rush’s life. While working on the case of a murdered prostitute, Mel is put on retainer by a major supernatural client, namely the Grim Reaper. What does Death want from the young detective? Someone has stolen his mask, the one magical item that gives him the power to execute his dark duties, and unless it’s returned before the last stroke of midnight on New Year’s Eve, humanity’s existence will be rung out with the last notes of Auld Lang Syne.more »

Ghosts and other strange occurrences are the order of the day in author Elizabeth Voss’ upcoming novel of paranormal suspense, THE WINSLOW INCIDENT.

Summertime 2010. A small town hidden in the mountains of the Pacific Northwest. Welcome to Winslow, Washington, where all anyone expects is another ordinary summer: tourists taking the ghost town tour, locals cooling off in Ruby Creek, the carnival in Prospect Park. Nothing unusual. That’s because residents here have always done well at keeping order, keeping secrets and keeping the past buried.

I recently had an opportunity to sit down with Yasmine Galenorn and ask questions about her upcoming book, COURTING DARKNESS:

Your new book, COURTING DARKNESS, is (correct me if I’m wrong) the twelfth in your bestselling Otherworld urban fantasy line. Can you tell us what you find the most exciting about writing such a long-running series?

Actually, COURTING DARKNESS is book ten in the series—I’ve written book eleven—SHADED VISION, and will be starting on book twelve in a month. COURTING DARKNESS comes out 11.1.11. SHADED VISION will be released 2.7.12.

I love getting to know the characters and watching them evolve—that’s one thing I love about writing a series. I get to be part of these characters’ lives for the long haul. I get to see what happens as they grow and as the months/years roll by. I also love the world building. Each book expands the worlds I’ve created. It’s like being an adventurer—in each book I explore a little further into the environments I create, along with the mythologies and cultures of the worlds.more »

A man who has spent his life defending his country discovers that fate has presented him with an even higher calling. Ben Morvant is not what you would call ordinary and, as a Navy SEAL, he never expected to lead an ordinary life. But when a routine mission to protect a local village in a war-torn region of Africa goes terribly wrong, Ben is presented with truths beyond what his military training and experience have prepared him to accept. With his dying breath, a village elder passes to Ben a gift—a simple ring, unremarkable except for its ever-changing color and the feeling of power emanating from within.more »

Agent Jackie Rutledge cannot rest. Her Bureau partner is dead… but not buried. And as author Jim Duncan catches up with her in The Vengeful Dead, the second of his Deadworld series, Jackie is also trying to come to terms with her newfound powers… and some undead secrets of her own. We caught up with Jim Duncan, a seemingly human father of four, and asked him about this latest installment in his paranormal thriller, his writing habits, and what it is like to write from woman’s point of view. (For more, please check out Jim’s website.)more »

Alma Katsu’s debut novel The TAKER is sure to appeal to fans of dark romantic fiction, drawing on history and the supernatural to tell a tale of obsession, revenge, punishment and, ultimately, redemption. BOOKLIST said, “Readers won’t be able to tear their eyes away from Katsu’s mesmerizing tale,” while PUBLISHERS WEEKLY said, “Katsu’s vividly imagined first novel is…full of surprises and a powerful evocation of the dark side of romantic love.” The TAKER has been compared to Interview With the Vampire, The Historian and The Twilight series, but is not part of the vampire literary tradition and creates a new myth all its own.

True love can last an eternity…but immortality comes at a price…more »

For as long as it has stood overlooking New England’s jagged coastline, Lexington House has been the witness to madness…and murder. But in recent years the inexplicable malice that once tormented so many has lain as silent as its victims. Until now…

A member of the nation’s foremost paranormal forensic team, Jenna Duffy has made a career out of investigating the inexplicable. Yet nothing could prepare her for the string of slayings once again plaguing Lexington House—or for the chief suspect, a boy barely old enough to drive, much less kill.more »

The Myth: When God cast the archangel Satan into Hell, ending the War in Heaven, peace prevailed on Earth. Until the fallen angels took revenge in the Garden of Eden. Ever since, mankind has been in a struggle between good and evil, paradise and apocalypse: the fall of Rome, The Crusades, World Wars, nuclear proliferation, the Middle East Crisis… The War in Heaven never really ended-it just changed venues. For millennia, God’s angels have been fighting Satan’s demons on Earth, all in hopes of bringing about Satan’s greatest ambition, the Apocalypse.

The Reality: Satan has never been closer to his goal than right now.more »

Still searching for redemption, fallen-angel-turned-human Brynna Malak now faces the mystery of how a nephilim in Chicago knows exactly when and where to be in order to save humans from certain death… with disastrous results. As the trail of bodies builds ever higher, each new clue leads to more twists in the bizarre case. The second exciting book in the Dark Redemption Series.

I recently had a chance to sit down with the author to discuss her latest book.more »

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Heather Graham puts a chill in summer reading with the release of two novels in her ‘Krewe of Hunters’ series, Heart of Evil and Sacred Evil. The series features an elite team of paranormal investigators who blend hard forensics with rare—often inexplicable—intuition.

First in the series is Heart of Evil.

Emerging from the bayou like an apparition, Donegal Plantation is known for its unsurpassed dining, captivating atmosphere, haunting legends…and now a corpse swinging from the marble angel that marks its cemetery’s most majestic tomb.

Desperate for help traditional criminologists could never provide, plantation heiress Ashley Donegal turns to an elite team of paranormal investigators. Among them is Jake Mallory, a gifted musician with talent that stretches far beyond the realm of the physical, and a few dark ghosts of his own.more »

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Heather Graham puts a chill in summer reading with the release of two novels in her ‘Krewe of Hunters’ series, Heart of Evil and Sacred Evil. The series features an elite team of paranormal investigators who blend hard forensics with rare—often inexplicable—intuition.

First in the series is Heart of Evil.

Emerging from the bayou like an apparition, Donegal Plantation is known for its unsurpassed dining, captivating atmosphere, haunting legends…and now a corpse swinging from the marble angel that marks its cemetery’s most majestic tomb.

Desperate for help traditional criminologists could never provide, plantation heiress Ashley Donegal turns to an elite team of paranormal investigators. Among them is Jake Mallory, a gifted musician with talent that stretches far beyond the realm of the physical, and a few dark ghosts of his own.more »

Best selling author Anna DeStefano returns this month to chill our hearts and rattle our nerves with Secret Legacy, the second installment in her contemporary psychic fantasy series. If you’re up for a horrifying mental nightmare of psychological suspense that’s like nothing else on your shelves, this is the book you’ve been waiting for.more »

Virna DePaul is former criminal prosecutor also writes paranormal romance for Berkley and contemporary romantic suspense for Harlequin. Virna also has self-published a number of other novels under the pen name Ava Meyers. I recently had the opportunity to interview Virna about her debut mass market paranormal romantic suspense novel, Chosen By Blood (Book 1 in the Para-Ops series) which will be available on May 3, 2011.more »

Dr. Nick Sewell. Non-conformist. Werewolf. The first puts him at odds with his colleagues’ idea of how an All Saints College lecturer should behave. The second, bestowed upon him by an ex-boyfriend, puts him at odds with himself.

There’s his tendency to change into a wolf on the full moon. And his visceral attraction to Julian Lauder, a troubled young German student. Despite his determination not to act on his desire, Nick’s brutal response to seeing Julian with another man frightens them both. At first.more »

I recently had an opportunity to sit down with Robert Masello, author of the new thriller, THE MEDUSA AMULET, and an award-winning journalist, television writer, and the bestselling author of many novels and nonfiction books.more »

THE SHADOW GUARD. They are the darkest of Black Ops. A force operating outside the sphere of the CIA or FBI. Taking their mandate not from the U.S. government, but from magic. And sex.

SAHIR. Astrid Carlson is one of them, a mage on a mission. With her wispy blond hair and those long, long legs, she can make a man forget himself. Until it’s way too late.

KUBRI. Jake Hammond is the only thing she needs, the human conductor who can focus all her strength, bringing her to a peak of power, or shattering her completely. Yeah, she’s got a hundred or so years on him, but who’s counting when there’s an unstoppable assassin to take down—and unstoppable chemistry to take on…more »

Recently, I had an opportunity to sit down with author J.N. Duncan to discuss writing, publishing and his new novel, Deadworld.

I see that you live and work in Ohio. Have you ever lived elsewhere, and if so, did it contribute in any way to your writing?

I’ve been in Ohio since 1999. I moved here so kids could be around extended family. Prior to that, I’ve lived in Oregon, Idaho, Colorado, and California. While I can’t say these particular places have done much to inspire my writing, growing up away from my grandparents in California, I was flown there each summer until I was about 14, and my grandmother was a mystery writer. Seeing her work, the electric typewriter and the reams of paper was a very cool thing for me. She inspired me to start writing, and her connections to other authors helped cement my goal of some day publishing a novel. Well known children’s author, Eve Bunting was in her writer’s group, and she critiqued the first chapter of my fantasy novel way back when (I was 14 at the time). Her simple words, “You have talent, keep at it,” may be the single most important six words I’ve ever heard regarding my writing journey.more »

With fourteen previous titles, Matt Forbeck now delivers an intriguing tale of a magic “show” on the Vegas Strip, only college freshmen Jackson Wisdom and Bill Chancey try using what they learned in Magic 101 to snooker the Big Boys. This is no mousy Rat Pack!

Think Ocean’s Eleven, using magic as an instrument for the heist. What happens in Vegas is that these two young men should never stay in Vegas, which harbors a dark, magical secret all its own. The whole place is run by magic—it’s founded on magic—and Jackson and Bill won’t believe who’s in charge. Forbeck added: “The young protagonists believe they’ve figured out a way to beat the system, just to find that their edge lasts only for so long.”more »

This month, it’s my honor to feature one of the supernatural thriller genre’s most interesting personalities, F. Paul Wilson. I’m not only a huge fan, I consider Paul a friend. At various conferences around the country, we’ve been on panels together and closed bars after hours. One of Paul’s most admirable traits is his protectiveness of his family and personal life. During this interview I made a valiant attempt to break in, but he held firm and the firewall stayed up! Paul might claim all that private stuff is boring anyway, but trust me, there’s nothing boring or dull about this amazingly talented writer. And you won’t find a kinder pro in the business. And if anyone’s curious, the F stands for Francis.more »

Urban Fantasy author Jaye Wells began her writing life at eight, but it took her another two decades for Jaye to hit her stride. Trading her career as a magazine editor and freelance writer for her own reality and the world of fiction, Jaye allowed her overactive imagination and life-long fascination with the arcane to create the Sabina Kane urban fantasy series. The series is a blend of dark themes, grave stakes and wicked humor. The latest release in the series, GREEN EYED DEMON, is on shelves in February 2011. I recently caught up with Jaye to discuss more about her books and writing process.more »

Jaime Rush has taken her affinity for all things strange and unexplained and wrapped them into a series packed with action, suspense and romance.

“The Offspring series,” she says, “is everything that I loved about The X-Files, Roswell, and Highlander. Now that those shows are off the air, I can only get my fix through the DVDs. So I created my own series where I can live the adventure again. Paranormal fiction, in books and television, is huge right now, and I’ve loved and written it for many years.”more »

Today you die. Today you are reborn. Today you hunt the man who killed you. When Secret Service agent Ronan “Methusaleh” Dooley is brutally murdered, he’s brought back from the dead yet again to hunt his killer, and in doing so uncover a terrible conspiracy.

Mike Stackpole says, “In Amortals,Matt Forbeck does what all great science fiction authors do: weave thought-provoking concepts through a cracking good story. The morality of immortality is a fascinating idea with which Matt Forbeck deals deftly. If you are looking for a great story with action, politics, great characters and an eye toward what might well be our future, Matt Forbeck’s Amortals is not to be missed!”more »

“What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas” takes on a new twist in Carole Nelson Douglas’s Delilah Street, Paranormal Investigator series. Delilah left Wichita a few years ago and now works in Las Vegas where the werewolf mob reigns, rock star-sorcerers are the hottest tickets on the Strip, and dowsing for the dead isn’t considered unusual but just another good police investigative practice. Adjusting to her new surroundings hasn’t been easy, and in the latest installment, Silver Zombie, Delilah must return to her hometown and discovers she truly isn’t in Kansas anymore.more »

Vampires, shifters, and werewolves – oh, my! New Orleans, Louisiana has seen more than its share of the mysterious, the bizarre, and even the gruesome. For the MacDonald sisters, the paranormal is the norm as they are the Keepers of the three supernatural races that call the Big Easy their home. However, when these supernatural races are targeted by unknown forces, the sisters are called upon to protect their charges, as well as the unsuspecting humans who live alongside them.more »

In Yvonne Navarro’s Highborn, everyone deserves a second chance. Brynna Malak might be the exception to the rule.

Brynna is a fallen angel trying to earn redemption. She’s escaped from Hell in search of a new life on Earth, but Lucifer’s deadliest Hunters are hot on her trail. Police Detective Eran Redmond is after her for a different reason: he needs Brynna to help him find a serial killer who is terrifying Chicago… and the trail leads them right to Hell-spawned demons of the most dangerous kind.more »

Inside Thrill Radio airs monthly, as host Jenny Milchman takes listeners deep behind the scenes to hear about brand new thrillers and how they came to be.

“Win, Lose, or Draw” is available starting April 19th: Three authors, who between them have racked up Edgar, Anthony, Agatha, Shamus, and Lefty award nominations, talk about their new thrillers! Will they win, lose, or draw at this year’s award ceremonies? Hear about their books and judge for yourself. Featuring guests Matt Coyle, Nadine Nettmann, and Lili Wright.